Architecture Biography

New York Times Notable Book “A smart, crackling chronicle of fast game, the ’80s art market, [and] the attraction of destruction.”— Village Voice A bold and vivid biography that chronicles the dazzling rise and tragic death of Neo-expressionist artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. In less than a...

W. G. Sebald’s celebrated masterpiece, “one of the supreme works of art of our time” (The Guardian), follows a man’s search for the answer to his life’s central riddle. “Haunting . . . a powerful and resonant work of the historical imagination . . . Reminiscent at once of Ingmar...

This book delves into the complex narrative of King Herod the Great, exploring his rise from an outsider in Idumea to a ruler marked by ambition and strategic cunning. Herod's heritage, intertwined with the turbulent history of forced Jewish conversion, posed both challenges and advantages as he navigated the treacherous political landscape of the Roman Republic. With crucial backing from Mark Antony and later Augustus, he secured his position as king of Judea, though this ascent was marred by ongoing doubts regarding his legitimacy and loyalty. Herod’s architectural endeavors serve as a ...

This New York Times bestseller intimately depicts urban life in a gripping book that slips behind cold statistics and sensationalism to reveal the true sagas lurking behind the headlines of gangsta glamour. One of The New York Times’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century In her extraordinary...

An in-depth exploration of history of the US Capitol building and the incredible personalities who built it, full of dramatic stories and surprising facts; a powerful testament to what the Capitol has meant to generations of Americans and how it has endured. The Capitol is a unique biography of...

This new biography—featuring over 150 archival images and full-color photographs printed throughout—introduces Julia Morgan as both a pioneering architect and a captivating individual. Julia Morgan was a lifelong trailblazer. She was the first woman admitted to study architecture at the...

Charles M. Schulz, the most widely syndicated and beloved cartoonist of all time, is also one of the least understood figures in American culture. Now acclaimed biographer David Michaelis gives us an in-depth biography of the brilliant, unseen man behind Peanuts. It is the most American of...

The scandal. The genius. The murder that shocked America. Frank Lloyd Wright was more than the mind behind America's most iconic buildings—he was a man whose turbulent private life captivated a nation. The famous architect's stormy marriage to Kitty Wright and his infamous affair with another...

"Describes with plenty of colour how surrealism, from Rene Magritte's bowler hats to Salvador Dali's watches, was born and developed." - The Times (UK) As she did for the Modernists In Montmartre, noted art historian and biographer Sue Roe now tells the story of the Surrealists in Montparnasse...

A fascinating biography of the philanthropist Albert Barnes, whose pioneering collection of modern art was meant to transform America’s soul From prominent critic and biographer Blake Gopnik comes a compelling new art collector biography of America’s first great collector of modern art...

The bestselling author of Catherine de Medici returns to sixteenth-century Europe in this evocative and entertaining biography that recreates a remarkable era of French history and brings to life a great monarch—Francis I—who turned France into a great nation. Catherine de Medici’s...

From Alec Nevala-Lee, the author of the Hugo and Locus Award finalist Astounding, comes a revelatory biography of the visionary designer who defined the rules of startup culture and shaped America’s idea of the future. During his lifetime, Buckminster Fuller was hailed as one of the greatest...

A novel in The L.A. Quartet. Internationally acclaimed author James Ellroy presents another literary noir masterpiece of historical paranoia. Los Angeles, 1958. Killings, beatings, bribes, shakedowns—it's standard procedure for Lieutenant Dave Klein, LAPD. He's a slumlord, a bagman, an...

In this deeply personal memoir, architect Leaford Leven Blevins, Jr. traces his journey from a high school drafting champion in Norman, Oklahoma, to a career that spanned continents, disciplines, and decades. An Architect’s Life is not a portfolio—it’s a portrait of a life lived with intention, resilience, and a relentless pursuit of purpose.

Think you know art history? Think again. Every masterpiece has a double life. Behind the breathtaking beauty of the world’s greatest paintings, sculptures, and architectural wonders lies a hidden world of bizarre misunderstandings, scandalous lawsuits, financial greed, and esoteric secrets. In Mysteries and Curiosities in Art History, art historian and architect Simone de Bartolo takes you on a captivating, fast-paced journey behind the scenes of the art world. Leaving dry academic jargon behind, this book shines a light on the human, eccentric, and downright strange stories that shaped ...

"There is no getting around the business of art, according to Arsham, so you might as well master it. 'The game is there,' he writes. 'Either you play it or it plays you.' Wise up, reader." —New York Times Inspiration is for amateurs. I’m a professional artist: I wake up every day and go to...

This stunning book by renowned television historian Dan Cruickshank tells the history of architecture through the stories of 100 iconic buildings. Journeying through time and place, from the ancient Egyptian pyramids to the soaring skyscrapers of Manhattan, renowned architectural historian Dan...

Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Ada Louise Huxtable's biography of America's greatest architect Renowned architecture critic Ada Louise Huxtable's biography Frank Lloyd Wright looks at the architect and the man, from his tumultuous personal life to his long career as a master builder. Along the...

An exuberant biography of the life of the iconic photographer and naturalist Peter Beard, whose life and work captured the cultural imagination Peter Beard lived an astonishing life. The artist, wildlife photographer, and bon vivant enthralled and inspired both because of his work and his...

Encompassing nearly 2,000 years of heists and tunnel jobs, break-ins and escapes, A Burglar's Guide to the City offers an unexpected blueprint to the criminal possibilities in the world all around us. You'll never see the city the same way again. At the core of A Burglar's Guide to the City is...